Client alleging accountant malpractice must show that there was a departure from the accepted standards of practice

In response to a client’s allegations of malpractice, the Court–in Dean v. Brodman, 2021 NY Slip Op. 01842–held that the accounting firm was able to show that it followed accepted standards of practice when it prepared the client’s tax information. The Court stated that an accountant may rely on information provided to it by a taxpayer–except if that information appears to be incorrect, incomplete, or inconsistent.
In this case, the information that was provided to the accountant did not appear incorrect, incomplete, or inconsistent. Therefore, the client failed to show that the accountant committed malpractice when the accountant relied on that information when it prepared the client’s tax information.